Operating mechanism for vehicle discharge means



R. W. MILLER May 27, 1969 OPERATING MECHANISM FOR VEHICLE DISCHARGE MEANS Filed Jan. 5. 1967 Sheet www .EE E zoummH-Lxl om /NvE/vToR ROY W MILLER BY ATT'Y May 2?, les@ R. W. MILLER 3,446,374

OPERATING MECHANISM FOR VEHICLE DISCHARGE MEANS Filed Jan. s, 1967 sheet of 3 CHAIN TRAVEL ROY W MILLER ATT'Y.

May 27, 1969 R. WJMILLER 3,446,374

OPERATING MECHANISM FOR VEHICLE DISCHARGE MEANS Filed Jan. s. 1967 sheet 5 of 5 /NVENTOR ROY W. MILLER BY ,gz

nited States 3,446,374 OPERATING MECHANISM FOR VEHICLE DISCHARGE MEANS Roy W. Miller, Highland, Ind., assignor to Pullman Incorporated, Chicago, Ill., a corporation of Delaware Filed Jan. 3, 1967, Ser. No. 606,610 Int. Cl. B65g 67/24; B61d 7/30 U.S. Cl. 214-63 13 Claims ABSTRACT F THE DISCLOSURE BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of invention A most eilicient and economical method of transporting coal or other bulk material is by way of railroad unitized or integral trains of hopper cars. To reduce the cost of delivering the coal, a unitized train depends largely upon the number of cars required, and how much time is necessary to unload the cars, shorter loading time providing more ei'licient and economical train operation. Therefore, what is required is a fast discharge of the coal while the train is in motion. Unloading systems of over-the-road locomotive type never leaves the train and the regular crew stays with the train, thus resulting in lower costs to the user through elimination of switch operations and special crews needed to unload the cars. The inventive design incorporates features which operate in this manner to substantially reduce the operating cost of delivery of the coal or other bulk commodities.

Description of the prior art Heretofore various types of door operating mechanisms for side discharge type railroad car hoppers have been provided where the operation of the door operating mechanism was performed manually at the loading dumping site. Other'types of door operating mechanisms operate pneumatically or by ground mounted cammed rails on car hopper linkage. These various types of door operating mechanisms either utilizing intricate otf-car actuating mechanism or on-the-car extensive linkage are usually cumbersome in construction and are expensive and occupy much needed space in the docking yards or at the dumping sites or on the cars themselves. This invention has for its purpose, objects and advantages to provide for simplified operating equipment for opening and closing the hopper doors which occupies a minimum of space in the docking area or dumping site and requires minimum space on the hopper car itself and is easy to maintain.

SUMMARY This invention relates to an improved mechanism for opening side discharge doors of a railroad hopper car vehicle where the olf-the-car initiating rail means is in the form of an arm xed at the dumping site or dock beneath the hopper car and is swingable under spring tension to properly engage the toe portion of a hook depending from a chain structure which reciprocates the hook for opening and closing the hopper doors through 3,446,374 Patented May 27, 1969 BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a general schematic elevational view of the railroad car embodying the features of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the invention showing door operating components mounted on the hopper vehicle for opening the hopper doors;

FIG. 3 is a side elevational view of the invention depicting the components as illustrated in FIG. 2;

FIG. 3a is a view taken along line 3cr-3a of FIG. 3;

FIG. 4 is a perspective View of the invention showing the ground mounted arm tripper for actuating the door operating equipment of the hopper car as found at the dumping site; and

FIG. 5 is an end view partly in section of the dock mounted tripper arm that actuates the door opening mechanism on the hopper car.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT With reference now to the drawings there is shown a railroad hopper car 2a of the side discharge type as shown in co-pending application, Ser. No. 598,440 tiled Dec. l, 1966 by William R. Shaver wherein there is provided hopper doors 2 of side mounted hoppers 3, three of which are partially shown in perspective in FIG. 2. As the hopper car 2a passes by the dumping site or dumping dock 4, the hopper doors 2 of each of the hopper cars 2a open and discharge the contents (such as coal) therein into olf to the side dumping pits. The railroad car 2a. is provided with the usual trucks 5 at each end thereof and with its end couplers 6, the side sills 7 and the hopper car body portion 8 thereabove. The door operating mechanism 9, as seen in FIGS. 2 and 3, comprises hopper car mounted door opening structure 10 as best seen in FIG. 2 and at the dock site or road bed mounted tripping mechanism or arm means 11 mounted at the dock site 4 as best seen in FIG. 4. The car mounted door operating or opening mechanism 9 comprises a pair of transversely or laterally extending door opening rods 12 and 12a which have their outer ends 13, 13 connected to rods 1,4, 14 for opening respective doors 2, 2 for hopper 43, 3, two of which are mounted on each side of the car as `would best be seen in FIG. l, making a total of four hopper doors 2, for the car 2a. The door operating rods 12, as seen in FIG. 2, each has a forward bend section 15 in it and then a transverse section 16 which has a hook end 17 pivotally connected to an elongated transversely extending plate or lever -18 at one end thereof and to the other end of plate 18 is connected hook arm portion 17 lconnecting with elongated transverse arm section 16' connecting with diagonal portion 15 (reversed to diagonal portion 15) which in turn is connected to end portion 19' of rod 12a corresponding to transverse arm portion 19 of door opening rod 12. The link or plate 18 is iixedly mounted to upright shaft portion 20 which connects the door operating mechanism 10 to the underframe or center sill of the hopper car 2a. The rod 20 extends through and connects with a large spur gear 22 that is horizontally mounted and is tixed with respect to plate 18. The gear 22 is in meshing relation with a small gear or pinion 23 fixedly mounted on an enlarged sprocket type gear 24 which is driven by a sprocket receiving chain which in turn operates to rotate other gears 24, as for instance the gear 24 shown to the left in FIG. 2 which moves gear 23 and in turn rotates gear 22 at the left end, and so forth, to operate the door operating rods 12 and l12a at the left end of the gure which in turn opens doors 2 that are attached to its respective rods in conjunction with the opening of other hopper' doors in the aforesaid manner.

The gear 24 at either end of the FIG. 2 rotates in a clock-wise direction because attached to the chain which is driving the gear is depending hook mechanism 26- which is drivingly carried by the chain 25 and engages the ground or dock mounted tripping arm means 27 which causes the chain to move in a clock-wise direction as the car moves to the right when viewed in FIG. 2. As seen in FIG. 2 the doors 2 are closed but they are getting ready to open. By this construction, since there is another hook mechanism 26a on the other side 25 of the chain 25 which can close the door once it is open by reversing the direction of the chain, the sprocket gears 22 and 24 and consequently the movement of the door opening rods 12 and 12a from that shown in FIG. 2, whether the car is moving in either direction or regardless which end of the car approaches the dumping site 4 first, the doors will open with the aid of the tripping mechanism 27 and then the doors will close with the aid of the tripping mechanism 27a or reverse the situation should the end of the car or the direction of the car be reversed. FIG. 3 also illustrates the operation of the chain hook means 26 and the ground mounted tripping mechanism 27. Specifically the hook mechanism 26 is mounted on the guide rail 28 and the hook mechanism 26a which later engages the extreme right positioned ground tripping arm means 27a (see FIG. 2) is mounted on the guide rail 29. These guide rails 28 and 29 are fixedly mounted to the underframe (not shown) of car 2a.

The hook mechanism 26 or 26a comprises interlock upper and lower plate portions 30, 30 and 31 31' which ride along the upper and lower surfaces of rail portions 28', 28" of the rail 28 or 29 when connecting with the tripping mechanism 27 and the hook mechanism 26- has vertical wall 33 and walls 32 and 33 which are iixedly attached (as by welding) to the chain and cause travel of the hook mechanism 26 with the chain 25, that is, the mechanism 26 is carried which carries the chain side portion 25' or 25" of chain 25 in backward path as the car moves forward. The lower part of the operating hook or sliding mechanism 26 is provided with depending wall portions 37, 37' (as seen in FIGS. 3 and 3a). The portions 37, 37' carry a pair of upper and lower transverse bar portions 38 and 39 at the rear end and at the forward end similarly transverse bar portions 40 and 41 each of which provide a space therebetween and each bar set 38 and 39 and 40 and 41 provides a spaceor common passage therebetween for slidingly receiving plate 42. The plate 42 has a central slot 43 for receiving. therethrough a pivotal hook 44 held to wall portions 37, 37' by pin 45 and having upper fore and aft dogs or portions 46 and 47. The rear portion or dog 47 rests atop the rear portion 48 of plate 42 to maintain the hook in vertical alignment in the manner shown in FIG. 3 in solid line. When the plate 42 has its forward end 50 engage abutment 51 depending from the forward end of guide rail 28, as seen in dotted line in FIG. 3, the hook -body 44 is allowed to be cocked or rotated in a counter clockwise direction by the tripping mechanism 27 and since the slide plate 42 now provides clearance for the dog or toe 47, it clears the opening and Aallows the lower outward sloping portion 44a of the hook portion 44 to disengage from the tripping means or operating loop 27 on the dock 4. The edge 44a of the hook 44 operates in a similar manner as does the plate 42 in hitting an opposite abutment over to the left (not shown) when the car is traveling in the opposite direction in a similar manner, as does the dog 46 allowed suicient clearance when the car is going in the opposite direction.

As shown in FIG. 4 there is shown a dumping site or dock 4 where the car 2a may dump its load. The dumping site is provided with the tripping mechanism 11 which in addition to including the tripping units 27 and 27a is provided with pneumatic cylinder means 55 for raising and lowering the tripping mechanism 27 or 27a from the upright solid line position to the dotted line position as shown in FIG. 4. The pneumatic operating unit 55 is connected on a cross tie 58a by its trunnion 60 and has an operating rod 62 connecting with plate means on the cross tie 58. There is provided another cross tie 59 for supporting the tripping unit 27a. The operating rod of the pneumatic unit 55 is connected by its trunnion 63 to pin means 63a which is also connected to the trunnion 64 of connecting rod 65 which has trunnion 66 connected to the other tripping or loop mechanism 27a for operating it.

The car 2a has its truck wheels 5 ride the rails 71 and 72 to allow its hopper units 3 to straddle the dumping dock trestle portion 4, the rails 71 and 72 being supported on longitudinal pier members 69 and 70. When the pneumatic system 55 is actuated, the units 27 and 27a may be placed in the upright position for connection with their respective hook means 26 or 26a at the desired time interval. Each tripping mechanism 27 or 27a is identical and we therefore shall direct our attention to the tripping mechanism 27 as shown in FIG. 5 which comprises support legs 73 and 74o journalling a torison bar shaft or spring bar 74 surrounded by tubular member 75 `which is tied to the torsion bar 74 by clevis means 76 and a portion 76a, 7619, 76C and 76d in form of nuts tied to a bolt 76e. The left end of the torison bar is rigidly connected to upright element 77 which is fixed and supports pneumatic rod 62 in connecting rod 65, the other end 73 of the torison bar 74 being free to rotate in its journals 78, 79 and 80, 81a with respect to mount 73 and the handle or hook part 81 (integral with tube 75). The hook part 81 has transverse horizontal part 83 and vertical arm portions 84 and 85, the dogs 44a and 44b engaging with the cross bar portion 83 of the hook or tripping mechanism 27 or 27a as the case may be.

Thus, as the car 1 passes along the rails 71 and 72 and enters the area of the dumping site or dock 4 the hook mechanism 26 or 26a, depending on what end of the car is entering and what direction the car is going, engages the engaging loop or mechanism 27 or 27a causing the operating hook 44 of the hook mechanism 26 or 26a to pivot about its pin 45 slightly to grab positively with the cross arm 83 of the tripping mechanism 27 to cause movement of the sprocket chain 25 and ultimately the door operating rods 12 and 12a to open the hopper doors 2 and upon further movement of the car the other hook 26 or 26a engages its corresponding hook receiving or tripping mechanism 27 or 27a to close the hopper doors by reversing movement of the sprocket 25, the limiting action between the pivotal hook 44 and the arm 81 connection being limited by movement of the slide plate 42 against the stop 51 to cause release of the hook from the engaging loop for operation of the other hook to engage the other loop for moving the doors in the opposite direction, this all being accomplished by the reciprocating action of the continuous roller chain.

lt will be noted that the loop or tripping mechanism is under the effect of a torsion spring arrangement such that once the coupling takes place between the hook means and the tripping means there is a good seating relation between them but once they are uncaught by the action of the sliding bar 42 against the abutment 51 there is a release and the spring is allowed to return to its position. Further, once the pneumatic ram is withdrawn it can lower the ground hook or tripping member 81 to an out-of-way position where it cannot operate the hopper doors of a car. The pneumatic unit can similarly raise the ground hooks 81 for operating the hopper doors of a car' and the pneumatic ram is connected to the cylinder lever arm 77 which is a Xed connection for the torsion bar to allow wind-up to occur. Each pivot 17a and 17a of door operating rods 12 and 12a respectively swings past the transverse plane of central shaft 20 toward the other rod 12a or 12 respectively into an over center position to insure locking of doors 2, 2 in the closed position thereof.

The foregoing description and drawings are given merely to explain and illustrate the invention and invention is not to be limited thereto, as those skilled in the art who have the disclosure before them will be able to make modifications and variations therein without departing from the scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. Door operating mechanism for a vehicle discharge means having doors for discharging of a load laterally outward ofthe vehicle, comprising:

a door operating mechanism comprising a hook means for engaging an on-dumping-site tripping mechanism,

exible means carrying said hook means,

gear means driven by said flexible means, and

door opening mechanism in the form of door opening rod means coupled to said gear means and operable thereby to open the discharge doors of the vehicle.

2. The invention according to claim 1, and

dock mounted door tripping mechanism disposed in the path for an on-coming car and comprising a pivotal arm means,

means for raising and lowering said arm means, and

means on said arm means adapted for cooperation with said hook means to insure a good coupling action therebetween.

3. The invention according to claim 2, and

said arm means comprising a torsion bar receiving portion,

a torsion bar means pinned to said torsion bar receiving portion, said torsion bar means having one end freely rotatable and the other end held fixed whereby spring action is provided to said tripping mechanism to allow it to go to a connecting position with the hook means.

4. The invention according to claim 1, and

said hook means comprising a pivotal hook having pivotally mounted dog end portions and having a rst upright position for engagement with an associated tripping mechanism, and

retaining means engageable with one of the dog end portion for holding said hook in an upright trip-engaging position, and

means on said vehicle for releasing said retaining means to allow the hook to be pivoted to an out-of-way position to allow release of the hook from the tripping mechanism.

5. The invention according to claim 4, and

said retaining means comprising a slider plate having a slot for supporting said pivotally mounted dog end portions of said hook whereby when said release plate is moved by an abutment on said vehicle, one of the said dog portions is allowed to slip through opening in said retaining means and release the other of said dog portions from said tripping mechanism.

6. An unloading dock-mounted tripping mechanism for location at the rails, said mechanism being adapted for engagement with a hook means on a door opening mechanism mounted on a hopper, said tripping mechanism comprising a pair of laterally spaced arm means for mounting between the rails, one arm means for each direction of travel of the hopper,

actuating means interconnecting each arm means for raising and lowering each of said tripping arm means together into and out of the path of said hook means, and

biasing means on each arm means for holding a respective arm means independent of the other arm means in an engaged position with said hook means until said hook means is released from said respective arm means whereby said respective tripper arm means positions itself for engagement with a future hook means of another hopper.

7. A door operating mechanism for a vehicle discharge means having doors for discharging a load laterally outward of the vehicle comprising:

door operating rod means adapted for connection with said doors,

gear means connecting with said door operating rod means and lying generally in horizontal planes, continuous flexible means in driving connection with said gear means, and

dock intercepting hook means carried by said flexible means for moving said hook and said flexible means relative to the movement of said vehicle for opening said doors,

said hook means comprising a hook pivotally suspended from said llexible means, and

guide rail means guiding said hook means.

8. The invention according to claim 7, and

said hook means having a slider plate for limiting pivotal movement of said hook, and

means for moving said slider plate to allow pivoting of said hook for disengagement and engagement with an associated ground mounted hook tripping means.

9. The invention according to claim 7, and

said gear means including a plurality of gears being provided at longitudinally spaced positions for opening a plurality of hopper doors.

10. The invention according to claim 7, and

said gear means comprising a lirst larger gear connecting with the exible means and having a smaller gear constrained for rotation therewith, a second larger gear engaging with the iirst smaller gear to multiply the movement of the door opening rod means.

11. The invention according to claim 6, and

said actuating means comprising link means connecting with each of the arm means, and

pneumatic means connecting with said link means for raising and lowering said arm means.

12. The invention according to claim 6, and

each of said tripping arm means comprising a hook portion and a tubular portion, said biasing means including torsion bar means extending through said tubular portion,

said actuating means being Xed to one end of said torsion bar means for limiting rotational movement of said torsion bar means and the other end of said torsion bar means being freely rotatable.

13. The invention according to claim 12, and

said actuating means comprising link means connecting with each of the arm means, and

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 748,221 12/1903 Sheield et al. 10S-282 2,621,809 12/1952 Linville 214-58 ROBERT G. SHERIDAN, Primary Examiner.

U.S. Cl. X.R. 10S-241, 290, 299, 304

gjg UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF' CORRECTION Patent No. 3,446,374 Dated May 27, 1969 Inventor(s) Roy -W. Miller It is certified that error appears in the above-identified patent and that said Letters Patent are hereby corrected as shown below:

Column 6, line 62, add:

--pneumatic means connecting with said link means for raising and lowering said arm means.,.

SIGNED AND SEALED JUL 2 8 1970 45ml.) Attest:

Edward M. Fletchenh WILLIAM E; 86m, JR. nesting Ofr Comissioner of Patents 

